SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR

John Richard (J.R.) Chantengco

Mr. Chantengco is a 30 year veteran in the capital markets, finance, and investment banking space, having originated, underwritten, and transacted over USD 5B in structured capital and loan assignments as well as overseen real assets with over USD 20B AUM.  Its family office is a CDFI/CDE entity under the U.S. Treasury's New Markets Tax Credit Program and were founding shareholders in Pacific Commerce Bancorp (OTC: PCBC).  His experience has brought him into advising several funds focused on transformative real estate, distressed debt, healthcare, technology, infrastructure, and media/entertainment. 

Mr. Chantengco currently oversees deal flow and consults private investors of Fortune 500 companies on new acquisitions, corporate restructures, asset management, and early-stage deals (pre-IPO/SPAC).  He has consultant an online SEC-compliant Reg CF and Reg D exempt 506c platform focused on real estate, technology, and life sciences and provides OCIO services to an industrial real estate fund.

In 2021, Globe St., a leading commercial real estate publication nominated Mr. Chantengco as a "Lender Influencer."  In the same year, NAPABA and APAICS nominated him to serve as Regional Director to HUD in New York and had previously nominated him to serve on the NCUA Board in 1994.  He was appointed as Secretary to the State of California's Housing Partnership Corporation by former Governor Gray Davis and continued to serve under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger from 2001-2005.    

Mr. Chantengco served as 2020 & 2021 President for the New York Metro Certified Commercial Investment Member Chapter.  As an independent advisor, he was conferred the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) professional designation from The CCIM Institute in Chicago IL in 1992.  He earned professional certificates in Community Economic Development (CED) from San Diego St. University Fowler Business School and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Associate (LEED GA) from the New York Real Estate Institute.  He is a duly licensed real estate broker in New York and California.

He has been federally contracted by RTC and FDIC where he evaluated distressed assets and bank-owned and CMBS NPL portfolios.  His largest assignment was in 2010 where he was part of a national consulting team in New York that underwrote USD 10B+ nonperforming loan portfolio comprised of 25 asset pools of 268 loans totaling USD 1B+ in unpaid principal balances that were eventually discounted and sold to a large institutional investor.  The entire portfolio consisted of multifamily, retail, office, industrial, and hospitality assets across 36 states and the work scope comprised of guarantor verification, title clearance, and credit memo review relative to recourse covenants and performing valuation reports on the corresponding collateral assets.

Mr. Chantengco has been involved in the acquisition, development, and management of over 5,000 affordable multifamily units that incorporate best practices in structured finance, real estate, and economic development into “Rethinking Cities for a Sustainable Future."  He was a member of the Shreveport Economic Recovery Taskforce (SERT) and is managing member of Blue Fire Broadband LLC to deploy low-cost broadband infrastructure.  He has also been involved with several projects within U.S. federally-approved Opportunity Zones and New Markets Tax Credits sites.

Immediately preceding his current roles, he was an Associate Broker with HKS Capital Partners LLC in New York in 2011.  His notable assignment was the winning acquisition bid by Brooklyn Health Partners LLC for SUNY Long Island College Hospital healthcare portfolio for USD 250M.  He began in corporate finance and institutional banking at Wells Fargo Bank and CB Richard Ellis, private equity and finance at The Triwest Financial Group Inc., and later, national advisory services at KW Commercial.  

Mr. Chantengco was Director of the University & State Employees (BluePeak) Credit Union with USD 1B in assets serving over 35,000 members and five branches until 2016.  He formed Transnational Renewable Ventures (TNRV), a CPUC-approved solar energy provider.  TNRV was instrumental in the installation of over 500kW of domestic solar power installed on various multifamily properties and recognized as a "Best Commercial Practice" project by Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE) in 2010.  In 2003, he structured USD 70M in New Markets Tax Credit sub-allocations for various affordable housing projects.   

Mayor Tim Nader selected him to serve as Housing Commissioner to the City of Chula Vista (San Diego County CA) and picked to fill a vacant seat on the Tax Appeals Board to the County of San Diego by Supervisor Brian Bilbray.  He was adjunct faculty at CUNY Baruch and Southwestern College where he was President of its Foundation.  He also sat on the City of San Diego SEDC loan committee.  

He is involved with the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), Stanford Professionals in Real Estate (SPIRE), Urban Land Institute (ULI), Association of Asian American Investment Managers (AAAIM), The Investment and Diversity Exchange (TIDE), Young Real Estate Professionals New York (YREPNY), and Filipinos in Institutional Real Estate (FIIRE - NY).  He is a past awardee of the Waitt Institute Foundation Scholarship where he completed a Eureka Fellowship in Wash DC. He received a Congressional Merit from U.S. Rep. Bob Filner for his advocacy on economic development and community leadership.

Mr. Chantengco completed Postgraduate Finance at the Stanford Business School, M.B.A. summa cum laude from the University of Phoenix Sperling Graduate School of Management, 1L J.D. Candidate (Pro Bono Scholarship) from Thomas Jefferson Law School, and B.A. Honors in Biochemistry & Cell Biology from the University of California San Diego.

James (Jim) P. Regan

Mr. Regan is a Managing Director of Black Pearl Investments where he specializes in Private Credit, Asset Based Lending (ABL), and Fixed-Income Bonds (High Yield) including Leveraged/Secured Loans offerings and Private Placement Memorandums (PPMs).

He has over 30 years of commercial real estate lending, loan underwriting, and bank credit committee experience. During his career, Mr. Regan structured and funded over USD 1B of real estate loans with the majority being collateralized by commercial real estate. Specifically, he has also originated, funded and sold commercial paper and loan portfolios to both institutional and the private equity secondary markets utilizing bank-backed lines of credit.

Mr. Regan vast experience includes institutional and private lending on both residential and commercial real estate, loan servicing, portfolio management.  He has also originated residential loans (FHA, VA, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Jumbos).  His primary loan underwriting capabilities includes the assessment of large-pool commercial loan portfolios (retail, office, industrial, and multifamily) as well as single-family on residential subdivision developments.

From 2002-2014, he funded and serviced several hundred million dollars worth of commercial loans utilizing bank-backed secured lines of credit and institutional investor pools.

Prior to studying finance, Mr. Regan studied Geology and spent his summers interning in the field on the Colorado Plato.  Additionally, during 2007-2013, he has produced to his credit and self-financed multiple feature movies and independent films in Hollywood CA.

Not to mention, he has been retained as a consultant for companies in vast industries including to finance renewable energy projects (Fuel cells, Solar, Microbiology for waste water facilities, perpetual power supplies).

In all, Mr. Regan prides himself on resolving complex financial problems with focus, creativity, and adept problem-solving skills for successful client outcomes.

He attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor concentration in Financial Management.

Charles D. Smith, OLY

Mr. Charles D. Smith Jr. is the Founder & CEO of Urban Icon Global Development LLC, based in and the United States. Sports have proven to be a sustainable economic driver, so the company focuses on enhancing and developing communities anchored by sports teams and or sports arenas.

Mr. Smith was the Head of Sports & Entertainment for MediaCom, which is owned by the largest media company in the world, WPP/GroupM. He is responsible for strategizing and directing a team that builds value for talent through social media services and brand partnerships. He was also Head of New Business Opportunities for Midas Exchange, another division of WPP/GroupM, a position held prior to MediaCom. From there, he focused on corporate trade through the restoration of value to companies’ underperforming assets and excess inventory in exchange for their media spend.

He has positioned himself at the intersection of Sports Marketing, Events, Business, and Technology. He has held other positions as the First Vice President of the NBA players Union and Executive Director of the National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA).

To that end, Mr. Smith produced and executed sold-out Basketball exhibition games featuring over 40 retired NBA players competing against National and local All-Star teams throughout Asia and South America.  Later, he curated intimate investment conferences for athletes, businesses, and Family Offices at iconic NYC venues, including Nasdaq and NYSE, during which non-traditional business-athlete partnerships were formed.

A successful entrepreneur, Mr. Smith is a groundbreaking inventor of customizable applications in the late 90s technology industry that produced a patented System and Method for Computer-Assisted Manual and Automatic Logging of Time-Based Media.

Mr. Smith is considered one of the first highly acclaimed former professional athletes to run a division at a major corporation a former 10-year NBA player, and he represented the United States as an Olympian (OLY).

He is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and a participant in an Executive Entrepreneurs program at Stanford University.

William E. Betts III

Mr. Betts serves as a Managing Director - Family Offices and Sports & Entertainment at Black Pearl Investments.  He was formerly with Helmsley Spear focused on investment sales, hospitality, capital advisory as well as commercial office leasing.

Prior to joining Helmsley Spear, Mr. Betts worked at Bear Stearns in New York City where he spent six years honing his financial skills while working in various areas of equity trading, convertible bonds, high yield trading, and private wealth management.  Mr. Betts then went on to work at Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley in their private wealth department servicing high net worth individuals, family offices, professional athletes, and music industry executives.

In 2004, Mr. Betts formed The Betts Group, LLC, a boutique business management and consulting firm involved in sports and entertainment.  As an entrepreneur, Mr. Betts utilizes his broad foundation to respond to the financial challenges of his clients by providing asset allocation advice, risk management strategies, as well as equity and fixed income solutions.  Although skilled in many areas, Mr. Betts is best known as a "rainmaker"; he has the uncanny ability to assess client needs and provide them with timely and obtainable business solutions.

Mr. Betts graduated from Connecticut College and earned his B.A. degree in Economics with a minor Sociology.  He is a proud father of twin boys and resides in Manhattan. 

Frederick L. Anderson 

Mr. Anderson does business development as a sales partner at Black Pearl Investments.  He is a premier executive with three decades of professional experience working with various organizations in numerous capacities across several business sectors.

He has an extensive background in real estate and has been involved in numerous development projects where he has structured public-private real estate development transactions valued at over USD 100M and collaborated with state commerce and economic growth commission liaisons to provide assistance to the business community.  This included assistance to county economic development committees to identify business opportunities and gaps, utilizing community development models, contributed to the county alliance economic growth committees strategic plan, focused on building a stable business community to serve its residents and attract added business traffic while he participated in the development of a municipality's economic development department plan to attract commercial business to its redevelopment areas.

He has also served on the board of an affordable housing not-for-profit organization that has rehabilitated over USD 20M in real estate projects and a municipal urban enterprise zone with a budget over USD 5M.

Mr. Anderson is certified by NeighborWorks of America's training program in Analytical Tools & Methods in community economic development, asset management for board members, and exit strategies for LIHTC projects as well as the Greening Your Organization program by the National Main Street Program in Downtown Revitalization, a comprehensive revitalization program that promotes the historic and economic redevelopment of traditional business districts.

His corporate career spans working with such companies as Operating Engineers Local 825, Deloitte, Citicorp, and The Pharmacy Fund, Inc., where he served in various managerial roles and developed his professional skills in accounting, auditing, business development, community development, controllership, finance, marketing, organizational management, sales and systems.

This led Mr. Anderson to establish himself as a veteran consultant that provides a complete range of business services across numerous business disciplines while serving such many sectors such as banking, finance, government, healthcare, e-commerce, manufacturing, non-profits, real estate, retail and technology.

He obtained his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Business Administration from Fairleigh Dickinson University where he majored in Business Administration and Accounting while minoring in Finance and Economics.

John (RJ) Estiva

Mr. Estiva is a Strategic Partner of Black Pearl Investments and Managing Partner of Enarr Capital. He is a seasoned finance professional with extensive expertise in securing and structuring a diverse range of financing solutions, ranging from USD 25M to over USD 500M. With a robust network of connections that includes direct access to lenders, family offices, and private equity firms.

As a prominent partner with a direct provider in supply chain financing, Mr. Estiva specializes in developing comprehensive financing strategies for receivables, payables, inventory, and special projects. His commitment to excellence is manifested in the solutions they provide, which cater to investment-grade companies, Fortune 500 enterprises, and large sovereign nations. With a minimum offering starting at USD 25M and extending up to USD 1B or more.

Throughout his career, Mr. Estiva has demonstrated a profound understanding of the intricacies of financial markets and investment strategies. He leverages his analytical skills and strategic thinking to identify the most effective funding avenues available, thereby empowering their clients to achieve their operational and financial goals with a collaborative approach that fosters strong relationships with stakeholders, while facilitating alignment with market trends and macroeconomic factors.

In addition to his expertise in financing, Mr. Estiva is known for their ability to articulate complex financial concepts in a clear and actionable manner. This skill is particularly evident when working with high-level executives and decision-makers in top tier companies where clear communication and strategic insight are paramount.

Mr. Estiva holds a distinguished track record of guiding organizations through the intricacies of supply chain finance, enabling them to unlock capital, enhance liquidity, and optimize their working capital management. His focus on investment-grade companies reflects a commitment to serving clients who require the highest standards of service and reliability.

Driven by a passion for innovation and excellence in finance, Mr. Estiva continuously seeks to expand their knowledge and expertise in the industry. He also stays abreast of emerging trends and evolving market dynamics to provide clients with cutting-edge solutions that drive sustainable growth.

In a rapidly changing financial landscape, Mr. Estiva remains dedicated to serving as a trusted advisor, helping clients navigate challenges and seize opportunities with confidence. Through his unwavering commitment to client success and their exceptional knowledge of financing mechanisms, he has cemented their status as a leading figure in the finance community.

Mr. Estiva graduated from New York University with a BS degree in Information Systems Management.

Tom (Chih-Cheng) Yeh

Mr. Yeh serves as a Special Advisor to Black Pearl Investments’ new desk focused on Emerging Technology & Innovation.  He is served in numerous executive leadership positions for the National Science and Technology Council in Taiwan and a former Engineer for Taiwan Power Company.

Aside from his successful career, he balances it with philanthropic work.  

He has been serving as a member of the board, chair of the board and the chair of the finance committee of RAMS Services Inc. since December 2017, which is one of the largest community-based mental health agencies in San Francisco, CA.

He won numerous community awards and accolades including the John W. Gardner Award in 2015 and was nominated to serve on the Small Business Administration (SBA) SBDC National Advisory Board in 2015.

In addition to mentoring young entrepreneurs and advising various businesses, he also works with tribal nations in the US and Africa via social ventures for economic development to help create jobs and sustainable enterprises.

Mr. Yeh also served as the Chairman of International Mensa Investment Club from 2010 to 2017, where he funds and manages investments for the Club. Mr. Yeh has been serving as a member of the Board of Trustees at Palo Alto University since May 2004. 

He has been serving as a member of the university’s executive committee since May 2005, a member of the finance committee and audit committee since May 2005, and the chair of the finance committee from May 2005 to December 2013. He is also the chair of the university’s investment committee, managing the university’s endowment since May 2005.

Since 2011, he also has been serving as a board member of Center on Juvenile & Criminal Justice, whose mission is to reduce society’s reliance on incarceration as a solution to social problems.

Mr. Yeh attended the University of California Berkeley from 1991 to 1992 and studied Biochemistry. During his stay there, he was involved in the International Chemistry Olympiad in 1991 and was also a Howard Hughes Scholar in 1992. He earned a Bachelor’s in Engineering Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Feng Chia University (Taiwan) and double masters MSc, Mechanical Engineering, National Central University (Taiwan) and MSc, Space Engineering, Cranfield University (U.K.).

Mark Grundman 

Mr. Grundman is heading Black Pearl Investments Special Situations Desk.  He is also a Partner at CHW Strategic Advisor. Throughout his career Mr. Grundman has cultivated a vast network of HNW/UHNW individuals within various investment institutions in the private and public domains.

Under Mr. Grundman's leadership, he will lead its new desk to take advantage of opportunistic events and alternative investment strategies.  BPI's desk will focus on SPACs, OTC and shell company acquisitions, M&A advisory, corporate spinoffs, private equity investments, and arbitrage opportunities.

By leveraging key relationships and market conditions, the desk aims to generate significant returns while offering advisory services to companies seeking capital or pursuing public listings.

With over 18 years of investing and operational experience, Mr. Grundman has raised capital and taken companies public. He specializes in creative solutions within M&A transactions.  He was Co-Sponsor of CHW Acquisition Corporation, serving as Co-CEO and Director.  Previously, he established MJG Partners, LLC to focus on small business investment opportunities within the consumer and service industries. 

Mr. Grundman was formerly the President of VPG International, LLC, a framed art design and manufacturing company.  He began his career and spent eight years at GAMCO Investors, Inc. working directly under Mario Gabelli focusing on special situations and risk arbitrage. 

Mr. Grundman earned a BA from Brandeis University and an MBA from Columbia Business School. 

Jeffrey N. Sayegh 

Mr. Sayegh is a seasoned professional with over a decade of experience in international business, diplomacy, and political strategy.  He is working with Black Pearl Investments in the area of Business Development with a focus on political consulting with the City of New York and foreign business affairs in the Middle East & Gulf States regions. 

Mr. Sayegh's career highlights includes:

*Political Campaigns: As a Political Strategist, Field Manager, and Communications Officer, he has orchestrated successful campaigns by developing strategies, managing communications, and fostering community partnerships. His efforts have significantly enhanced candidate visibility and engagement through innovative outreach programs.

*Legislative Aid: Serving as a Legislative Aid to NYS Assemblyman Thomas J. Abinanti, he was instrumental in setting operational goals, enhancing public communication, and managing legislative research and compliance.

*International Affairs: With roles at the Permanent Mission of Jordan to the United Nations and as an Assistant to U.S. Congressman Eliot L. Engel, Jeffrey has navigated complex international environments, focusing on peacekeeping, human security, and constituent services.

*Business and Procurement: As Deputy Director at Universal Defense, he has managed procurement operations across multiple continents, ensuring compliance, budget management, and strategic supplier relations

Mr. Sayegh's commitment to community service is evident through his political appointments, including his recent confirmation as Commissioner of Human Rights for the City of Yonkers. His accolades include being a recipient of the Global Forum of Youth Peace & Security and scholarships from the Robert Osgood School for International Studies.

Known for his strategic insight and diplomatic finesse, he continues to be a pivotal figure in both political and international arenas, dedicated to advancing community welfare and global peace.

Mr. Sayegh is currently completing an MBA degree with a focus on Organizational Leadership from Norwich University.  He currently holds an MA degree in International Relations with a concentration in Diplomacy & Counterterrorism from the same institution, and a Bachelor of Sciences in Political Science & History from SUNY Purchase College after first studying at Concordia College in New York.

Ritchie Bryan C. Misa

Mr. Misa represents Black Pearl Investments in the Philippines and the greater Asian-Pacific region. He is a seasoned banker with 25 years of comprehensive experience in the banking and finance industry, having served key positions in major Philippine financial institutions that include BDO Unibank (Philippines' largest bank), Orix Metro (Metrobank Group, 2nd largest bank), Philippine Business Bank (4th largest thrift bank), and East West Bank (11th largest bank).

As a banker, Mr. Misa has extensive knowledge and skills in institutional, corporate and commercial loan advisory and packaging, credit underwriting and evaluation, financial analysis, risk assessment and mitigation, and account management, business development and new account generation. Apart from these, he also handled branch banking and consumer/retail lending that included in-depth exposure to home and auto loan mortgages, and SME business lending. During the early days of his banking career that started in 1996, he had numerous assignments in credit investigation and asset appraisal. Throughout his career, he has managed a total loan portfolio of more than PHP 1.6B covering more than a hundred accounts that enabled him to make significant contributions to the banks' profitability.

Mr. Misa is concurrently a consultant of various government and private institutions for ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001:2015 - Quality Management System Certification.

He is also an independent global market Trader of various asset classes, possessing advanced skills in technical and fundamental analyses, risk management, and portfolio diversification.

Mr. Misa earned his Bachelor's degree in Economics from the Ateneo de Manila University on a full academic scholarship and also completed 24 units of the MBA program at the University of St. La Salle.  Additionally, he graduated from the Management Development Programs of BDO Unibank and East West Bank and received Certifications on courses in Technical and Fundamental Analyses and Trading Master Classes from the GMMG Elite University.

Joseph D. Maree 

As a Director for Black Pearl Investments, Mr. Maree’s focus is business development with his expansive network of institutional capital and investment-grade opportunities and an eye toward compliance and risk mitigation. 

He has worked as a Financial Analyst for the Merrill Lynch Private Client Group, PNC Bank (Newark, NJ), I.B.M. and New York Life Insurance Company.  Mr. Maree negotiation skills have guided international finance structuring for deals ranging from several million to more than USD 8B, platforming the wisest pathways accessing lowest cost guaranteed financing available in the U.S., Europe, Southeast Asia, South America, Canada and Puerto Rico. 

The wide array of industrial concerns he has served include manufacturing, insurance, energy production and distribution, coal mining, product distribution and installation, food service, printing, insurance, railroads and resorts, assisting clients in accurate completion of J/V structures, strategic alliances, leveraged recapitalizations, and undertaking or defending against hostile takeovers.  

An abbreviated representative sampling of his experience includes: IHI USD 275M USD Debt Offering; Regulation "S", 144a Safe Harbor Exempted Bond, SEC registered; IMG USD 500M USD Debt Offering, Regulation "S", 144a Safe Harbor Exempted Bond, SEC registered, Bank of NY Corporate Trust-Trustee & Paying Agent; Maverick Films USD 250M USD Debt Offering; Regulation "S", 144a Safe Harbor Exempted Bond, SEC registered; Nordea Bank 165m Euro Project and Credit Enhancement Facility; Dresdner Bank 200M Euro Project & Credit Enhancement Facility.

Mr. Maree's deft mergers and acquisition, finance, securities and debt restructuring talent creates secure pathways to successful profit creation for the Firm and its investors. 

Essentially, his combined experience and disciplines equates him as a comprehensive knowledge base, eliminating costly time and fee costs for one-off experts. Hands-on direction of regulatory function applying to banking and fundraising responsibilities, correct communication procedure and function addressing tax code, legal, security and life of property PPM application and valuation are among his proven rote attributes. Additionally his knowledge of guidance for correct Reg 506c offering, SEC/FINRA registration and licensing, and Dodd-Frank & Sarbanes Oxley Acts compliance.

His earned a B.B.A. in Economics at Rutgers University and completed the Structured Finance Program at New York University Stern Business School.

Bryon E. Danielson

Mr. Danielson serves as a Private Credit / ESG Director at Black Pearl Investments.  He is a serial entrepreneur in the renewable energy in the Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) space.  He brings 15+ years of ESG experience to the firm.  Mr. Danielson’s focus is business development with his expansive network of institutional capital and investment-grade opportunities and an eye toward compliance and risk mitigation with in the ESG-related world. 

Mr. Danielson was previously Vice President of Development of Levion Solar Company, a renewable energy company focusing on residential solar installations.  He was instrumental in bringing Levion from USD 5M in revenue to over USD 150M annual revenue with projected growth of USD 225M in revenue for 2023.  Previous before that Mr. Danielson has in numerous of capacities with in the ESG communities.  As a VP of Sales and Marketing to sales and financial management he was able to grow all verticals within the companies he was part of. 

Before his career in renewable energy, he was a Senior VP of Development for Reedman Toll Automotive Group.  He was instrumental in acquiring 12 new dealership locations including auditing, process implementation, revenue share, and marketing with franchises that were acquired. 

Mr. Danielson attended Utah Valley University with an emphasis in Economics.